


love will always find you

by airnomadenthusiast



Series: the donnaverse [2]
Category: Avatar: The Last Airbender
Genre: F/F, First Kiss, Mentions of Death, background mailee - Freeform, philosophical discussions of Donna Summer
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-01-17
Updated: 2021-01-17
Packaged: 2021-03-15 14:54:00
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 4,041
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28815201
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/airnomadenthusiast/pseuds/airnomadenthusiast
Summary: In some ways, it wasn't any different than the nights on the roof of Suki's car, but there was this energy between them, a warmth Yue could feel deep in her toes, the knowledge that she liked this girl and this girl liked her and there was no more pining left. And maybe what was left was harder than pining, because it was real, but it was real, and so it was worth it.or, Yue and Suki have their first date.
Relationships: Suki/Yue (Avatar)
Series: the donnaverse [2]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1891846
Comments: 11
Kudos: 34





	love will always find you

**Author's Note:**

  * For [sukis_fans](https://archiveofourown.org/users/sukis_fans/gifts).



> finally, finally back with this au. thank you to everybody who left such wonderful comments on bad girls, y'all helped me fall in love with this au again. you don't necessarily have to read bad girls to understand this fic, but there are some moments that won't have context. 
> 
> this fic is for you, Azul. our friendship is something that I will treasure for always. you are an amazing person, and it has been a joy knowing you <3 I already miss you so much. 
> 
> Suki and Yue's outfits in this fic are based on [ this art ](https://ohnofreyo.tumblr.com/post/637316933218369536/im-so-glad-you-liked-it-you-have-no-idea) from @ohnofreyo on tumblr, thank you so much for that hon it's absolutely gorgeous.

Suki was coming to pick her up in half an hour, which was great (beyond great, actually—Yue was  _ over the moon _ ) except for the fact that Yue was at Ty Lee’s apartment, halfway across town, freaking out about what lipstick to wear. 

“Do you think I should go with blue or pink?” 

Ty Lee considered for a moment before sighing. “I don’t know, they’re both pretty.” 

“Okay, they’re both  _ pretty _ , sure, but one of them says ‘hey, I like you, but in like a cool, fun, casual way’, and one of them says ‘I’ve been visionboarding our wedding since the day I met you’ and I don’t know which is which!” 

Ty Lee frowned. “Have you been visionboarding your wedding since the day you met Suki?” 

“No, obviously, that would be… really creepy. Which is why I never did it. Obviously.” Yue said, making a mental note never to show Ty Lee her Pinterest account. “Look, the point is, we are running low on time, and I need to decide on a lipstick,  _ fast _ , so if you could please—”

“Oh, don’t sweat it, I texted Suki and told her to pick you up here instead,” Mai said, walking in with a loose-fitting T-shirt, sweats, and a half-finished bowl of cereal, lazily kissing Ty Lee’s nose. 

Yue raised her eyebrows. “You did  _ what. _ ” 

“That way, you get a full half hour to decide which lipstick goes better with the palette you’ve set for you and Suki’s big day—” 

“Okay, Mai, I will actually kill you—”

“It’s for the best, Yue,” Ty Lee said, ever the voice of reason. “Your apartment’s really far from here, and with the traffic on Slauson there was no way you were going to make it back in time.” 

“Well, sorry I don’t have rich parents who can pay for an apartment downtown,” Yue grumbled. 

Ty Lee decided to ignore that. “Did you check your horoscope today? Because the day of my first official date with Mai, I didn’t know how I was going to do my hair, but my horoscope said ‘let loose and show off your inner elegance’ so of course I wore my hair down, and as you can see—” she gestured to Mai in her pajamas “—it worked.” 

Mai chuckled. “You know I don’t care about that stuff, right? Like I was already in love with you.” 

“Okay, but wearing my hair down sealed the deal!” 

“Ty Lee, sweetheart, my love, the deal had been sealed since we were five years old. Plus, we went rollerskating for our first date, and you were wearing a helmet the whole time, so—” 

“Ugh, I swear, the pining was better than this,” Yue groaned. 

Mai snorted. “Wow, I can’t believe you would rather see two of your best friends in pain as they pine after one another than deal with a little flirting.” 

“Okay, of course I could not be more thrilled for the two of you, but I am having a crisis and you and your insufferable, beautiful love are distracting from me and my problems. So if you are done with your moment, I would like to circle back to me, please.” 

Mai laughed again, and something in Yue’s heart loosened as she remembered how happy she was that one of her best friends laughed a lot easier now. “Y’know, I was going to, but actually maybe we can  _ circle back  _ in three to five business days, Miss LinkedIn profile.” 

  
“I freaking swear—” 

  
“Oh, such strong language—” 

“Okay, that’s enough! We have a fashion emergency on our hands.” Ty Lee shook her head at the both of them. “So, Yue, what did your horoscope say?” 

“About what?” 

“The  _ lipstick _ , we have—” Ty Lee checked her phone “—twenty minutes!” 

Yue sighed. “What if my horoscope isn’t helpful?” 

“Oh, I can’t imagine a situation in which a horoscope wouldn’t be an amazing tool to pick a lipstick color,” Mai said, yawning and scrolling through her phone. 

Ty Lee rolled her eyes. “Honey,  _ focus.  _ Our friend needs help.” She turned her attention back to Yue, her hands on her lap. “Well?” 

Yue averted her eyes. “It said ‘don’t sweat the small stuff.’”

Mai burst into a fit of hysterical laughter just as Ty Lee scoffed. “Well, obviously you can’t listen to that. I mean, this isn’t even a small decision, this is  _ important—” _

“But babe, how can you say that when the stars  _ aligned  _ to tell Yue exactly that?” Mai asked, her smirk betraying the innocence in her voice. 

Ty Lee sat straighter. “Well, you know, it’s not an exact science.” 

Mai gasped. “Astrology isn’t an exact science? Wow, I am learning so much today.” 

“Okay, again, the banter is cute, but not when it’s getting in the way of solving my problems.” Yue sighed. “I just want everything to go perfectly. And if I pick the wrong color, who knows what else could go wrong?” 

And at this, Mai softened and took Yue’s hand. “Nothing is going to go wrong, Yue. I promise. Suki is just as into you as you are into her. In fact, she made a whole new group chat with me and Azula three days ago so she could start workshopping outfits.” 

Ty Lee frowned. “Why did she make it with you guys and not me?”

“Oh, sweetheart, it’s nothing personal, she just wanted people who were going to tell her the truth about how bad her outfit options were. And believe me, we cycled through some really terrible ones,” Mai said, kissing Ty Lee’s cheek before she turned back to Yue. “Speaking of options, go with the blue. You always look better when you’re taking risks.” 

Yue grinned. “Thanks, Mai.” She got up and hugged them both before going to Ty Lee’s bathroom and carefully applying the blue lipstick before checking herself out in the mirror. She thought she looked pretty okay. Suki had said that they weren’t doing anything fancy, so she’d opted for a loose, light blue sweater and some earrings that she’d made herself, little jars of confetti with moons hanging on either side. And then the blue, which was a little bold, but Mai was right—fashion risks were her thing, and she should take one today. 

She heard the doorbell ring and went to get it, but Ty Lee beat her to it. Mai shot her a knowing look before turning back to her phone. 

“Hey, Ty L—” Suki’s eyes landed on Yue, and she blushed, which made Yue blush. She looked amazing, wearing a loose fitting green flannel over a black tank top and a gold necklace that Yue had made her for her last birthday. Her hair was loose, framing her face, and Yue’s mind drifted, briefly, to her Pinterest board. 

She coughed. “Suki, hi, you look… absolutely amazing.” 

“So do you,” Suki said, her eyes bright. She tucked a lock of hair behind her ear, and Yue sighed aloud, which made Mai snort and then cough to cover it up, which was just… awesome. 

“Sorry about, um, well, me being here instead of my apartment,” Yue said. 

Suki shook her head. “No, this was actually way easier for me. We’re a lot closer to where I’m taking you.” She offered her hand. “May I?” 

Yue grinned. “You may,” she replied, taking Suki’s hand. 

“Have fun!” Ty Lee yelled as they left. 

“But not too much fun!” Mai added.

Yue put a hand to her temple, but Suki threw her head back and laughed. Sunlight danced around her, making her even brighter and more wonderful than she already was, and Yue felt her shoulders drop. She got in the passenger seat of Suki’s big green van, and Suki squeezed her hand for a few seconds before pulling away to put her keys in the ignition, and drive. 

“I’m taking a little bit of a scenic route, if that’s okay,” Suki said, smiling over at Yue. 

Yue nodded. “Of course.” 

They were driving through the mountains, and Yue thought of something Suki would say to her, on nights when it was just the two of them, and they climbed up to the roof of Suki’s van and lay together, looking up at the stars.  _ LA is ugly and awful, but damn if it isn’t the most beautiful thing I’ve ever seen.  _ And looking at the mountains, the way the sun gleamed through the hills, the late afternoon ocean breeze, there was a part of Yue that agreed. 

She wasn’t sure. She missed Alaska. She missed her parents. She didn’t like claiming someone else’s land as her own. LA was never going to be hers, and that was okay—it wasn’t supposed to be. It wasn’t Suki’s either, but Suki never walked through the city like she owned it. To her, LA was an experience, not a possession. Every moment in the city was fleeting, and it lasted an eternity: she drunk up the sea and the sky and the sun and the traffic and the peeling paint and the graffiti and the neighborhoods that were demolished for high rises and the trendy coffee shops that displaced people and the roads built to keep low income neighborhoods from driving, and she accepted that this was what the world was. Some of it was ugly, some of it was awful, some of it needed to change, and some of it needed to be torn down. And some of it was beautiful. 

“Can you get my phone?” Suki asked. 

Yue nodded, then frowned. “It’s locked.” 

“The password is my birthday,” Suki said. Yue stared at her. 

“Why did you tell me that?” 

Suki laughed. “So you could open it?” 

“But you hate people knowing your passwords.” 

Suki shrugged. “I trust you.” 

Yue smiled softly. “Okay.” She entered in Suki’s birthday, and the phone opened up. “What do you want me to do?” 

“Go to my Spotify,” Suki said. “There’s a playlist labeled ‘gold necklace.’”

Yue nodded, and pressed play. As soon as she did, Donna Summer blasted out of Suki’s speakers. Yue smiled.

“Suki, what is this?” 

“Songs that make me think of you.” 

Yue giggled. “You made this for me?” 

Suki shook her head. “I made it for me. After you gave me this,” she said, touching the necklace, “and I realized I was head over heels and I needed a playlist to yearn to. That’s why it’s called ‘gold necklace’, by the way.” 

Yue’s grin took over her face. “Really?” 

Suki nodded, and Yue sat back, unable to contain her happiness. 

_ “Love will always find you,”  _ she sang softly.  _ “No matter where you hide.”  _

Suki grinned. “We should pitch that to the band. It would be nice to do another Donna cover.” 

“This one’s my favorite,” Yue said. “It’s just—I don’t know. It’s sweet and romantic but it’s also vaguely threatening? Like love will find you—or else.” 

Suki laughed. “But doesn’t love feel like that sometimes? Like you don’t want it, you’re not ready for it, and yet—” 

“And yet it comes anyway.” Yue looked down at her hands. “I think that’s how Sokka felt about me. It was so obviously doomed from the start, and I saw it, and he just  _ wouldn’t.”  _

“But that’s just Sokka though,” Suki pointed out. “He has to make one mistake a million times before he realizes that it was a mistake.” 

Yue snorted. “You’re not wrong about that.” 

“And honestly, that’s the way I felt about Sokka,” Suki said. “I never thought I was going to hold a torch for anybody the way I did for him.” 

“He can’t help it,” Yue said, smiling. “Somehow he just makes that dorkiness look really charming.” 

Suki nodded. “I don’t know, I think you can read it another way.” 

“Oh yeah, sometimes Sokka’s dorkiness is  _ so  _ annoying—” 

“That’s not what I— _ Yue! _ ” Suki laughed. “I meant the song, not Sokka.” 

Yue turned her face towards Suki, leaning back on the headrest so she could just look at her. “Okay. How do you read it?” 

Suki tapped her fingers on the steering wheel, nodding in time to the music. “I think she’s saying that love is stronger than any bad thing that can happen in your life. Terrible things can happen to you, and you can be afraid, you can be sad, you can be lonely, you can be hopeless, but love is always going to find a way. And it can build you back up, if you let it.” 

She was so beautiful then, and Yue didn’t know if she could ever look away from her. “I love that.” 

Suki looked over at her briefly and smiled, her dark brown eyes full of something soft and fragile. Something that Yue had never seen before. Something she suspected had been there the whole time, if only she had looked for it. She took Yue’s hand and brought it up to her mouth, kissing it gently before squeezing it and letting it go. “That’s how I feel about you.” 

Yue felt like she was never going to stop grinning. “Really?” 

Suki nodded. “I’m so glad that Azula told us that we liked each other,” she said. “And that Katara kept me from murdering her for telling us that we liked each other.” 

Yue laughed. “Her heart was in the right place, but yeah, if we hadn’t been about to go on I would have screamed at her.”

Suki turned the corner into a residential neighborhood full of small houses with yellowed lawns. “Well, your restraint paid off, Miss Regular Act at the Beifong Club.” 

“Thank you, fellow Miss Regular Act at the Beifong Club.” Yue bit her lip. “I still can’t believe it, honestly. Seems like just yesterday we were doing karaoke for my birthday.” 

Suki pulled out a garage opener from her glove compartment. “Just another way you’re the source of some of the best things in my life.” 

Yue tucked a lock of hair behind her ear. “You’re amazing, you know that?” 

“Yeah, a little.” She pulled into the garage. “We’re here.” 

Yue frowned. “Can I ask where here is?” 

“My house.” 

Yue’s eyes widened. None of them had ever been to Suki’s house—whenever they hung out, she picked them up, or else they hung out on campus or close to it. Yue didn’t know how she would have pictured where Suki lived, but she was certain that whatever she would have come up with wouldn’t have looked like this. Not that this was bad, it was just—

“Come on, you can say it. I know it doesn’t look half as nice as Ty Lee’s apartment.” 

Yue shook her head. “I wasn’t going to say anything.” 

Suki turned to her and took her hand. “You know the reason nobody’s ever been to my house? It’s because I was ashamed of it. I am still, a little bit, but I’m trying not to be.” 

“You don’t have anything to be ashamed of.” 

Suki smiled. “Thanks.” 

A thought crossed Yue’s mind. “Are your parents here? Do you want me to meet them?”  _ Shit, I should have gone with the pink.  _

Suki laughed and shook her head. “No, no, they’re visiting my cousin and his boyfriend in Las Vegas for the week, so I’ve got the house to myself. I promise, when you meet them I’ll let you know beforehand.” 

Yue sighed out of relief, but the thought of  _ when  _ made her stomach feel warm. Suki liked her enough to introduce her to her parents. 

They got out of the car and Suki let Yue in. The house looked lived in and comfortable, with a cozy little gray couch that might have once been white, carpeting, an unfinished game of Monopoly on the ottoman, a tiny little TV in the kitchen. Yue saw a bunch of food piled up neatly on the kitchen table, and a pot with something simmering in it. Taped onto the refrigerator were a few pictures of a little girl standing in the middle of four adults. She was smiling wide, her two front teeth missing, and the adults were kneeling next to her, looking at her adoringly. 

“Is that you?” Yue asked. 

Suki ran over to the pot that was simmering on the stove before looking back at Yue. “Yeah, that’s me,” she said, stirring the pot. “My Má and Ba are on the left, and my parents are on the right.” 

Yue didn’t speak Vietnamese, but something about that sentence seemed off to her. “Sorry?” 

Suki grabbed an apron off the hook in the kitchen and put it on, before grabbing a blue bandana and tying it around her head as she worked on whatever was on the stove. “I call my bio parents Má and Ba.”

_ Oh.  _ Yue hadn’t really known what to say when Suki had told her that her bio parents were dead. All the times she had complained to Suki about her parents had come back to her in a rush of shame, and before she could even think there was an apology spilling out of her mouth. And Suki had smiled and told her that it wasn’t her fault. 

“My parents and Má and Ba were best friends,” Suki said. “My parents were actually Má and Ba’s only friends here, before they died. This  phở is actually a recipe that  Má taught my mom before she died. And it’s what we’re going to be eating on our date.” 

Yue’s eyes widened. “Wait, Suki, you did all of this? That’s so sweet.” 

Suki smiled. “Only the best for you.” She got out another, bigger bowl and scooped the finished  phở into it, before carrying that bowl to the kitchen table. Then she took her apron off, kissed Yue on the cheek, and said, “Let’s eat.” 

Suki pulled out Yue’s chair for her before getting her phone out and continuing to play her gold necklace playlist. Sarah Vaughan sang low about green pastures and Technicolor movies, and Suki was sitting so close to her, and Yue felt like she had never experienced a more perfect moment in her life. 

“This is amazing,” Yue said, scooping more of the phở into her bowl. “Your  Má must have been an amazing cook.” 

“Oh, she definitely was,” Suki said. “This is but a pale imitation of her work.” 

Yue really didn’t want to be that girl who talked with her mouth full on the first date, but it was Suki, Suki who really knew her, mouth full and all. “So is this what you had planned?” 

“And maybe we watch a movie after.” Suki frowned a little. “This is okay, right? I know it’s not much, but—” 

“Oh no, no, this is amazing. Suki, this is the best date I have ever been on, by a lot. I just—I’m eating really fast and I don’t want this to end, ever.” 

Suki laughed. “You can have some more  phở if you want?” 

Yue rolled her eyes. “You know that’s not what I meant.” 

“Yeah, I know.” Her eyes crinkled in amusement. “So movie then?” 

“Yes, absolutely.” 

They kept talking. About the band, which was gaining more traction every day (“I mean, can you believe that Toph’s actually talking about setting up a merch store? Who’s buying merch of us?” Suki said with a laugh. “Clearly someone wants to, or else Toph wouldn’t want to waste money on it.”) About their friends (“Azula keeps complaining to me about Zuko, and Zuko keeps complaining to me about Azula, and nothing I say satisfies either of them,” Suki said with a groan.) About the Grammys (“Rina not being nominated for anything is a goddamn crime.” “Agreed.”) In some ways, it wasn’t any different from the nights on the roof of Suki’s car, but there was this energy between them, a warmth that Yue could feel deep in her toes, the knowledge that she  _ liked  _ this girl and this girl liked her and there was no more pining left. And maybe what was left was harder than pining, because it was real, but it was  _ real _ , and so it was worth it. 

They moved to the couch, holding hands, and Yue rested her head on Suki’s shoulder, because she could, and Suki put her arms around Yue and pulled her even closer, because she  _ could,  _ and Yue looked up in her eyes and wanted to say everything.  _ This was the perfect day. You are the perfect person for me. I want to spend the rest of my life knowing you.  _

But saying all of that might lead Suki to thinking that Yue had been secretly visionboarding their wedding, and she wasn’t ready for that conversation yet, so instead, she whispered, “Can I kiss you?” 

Suki nodded, her face deadly serious, like they were on the precipice and there was no going back, and Yue smiled and leaned in. She cradled Suki’s face gently,  _ you matter to me, you matter so much _ , and kissed her carefully, lips moving slowly and precisely against hers. Suki put her arms around Yue’s waist, and kissed her a little harder, and Yue giggled, and their noses bumped, and then Suki was giggling too, and they were both pulling back, and Yue rested her forehead on Suki’s. Her whole face was warm, but it didn’t matter. The only thing that would ever matter was Suki. 

“I’ve been wanting that forever,” Suki whispered. 

“Me too,” Yue whispered back. She pecked Suki’s nose quickly before turning around so that her back was on Suki’s chest, and pulled Suki’s arms tighter around her. “You pick the movie.” 

“No, it’s okay, you can pick it—” 

Yue rolled her eyes. “You asked me out, you picked me up, and you made us a lovely dinner. The least you can do is pick the movie.” 

“But you kissed me first.” 

“Suki.” 

“I never would have gathered up the courage to kiss you first,” Suki said quietly. “Like I know Azula told us that we liked each other and she’s usually not wrong about things like that, and then we talked about it later and you said you did, but…” 

She trailed off, and Yue looked up at her. “Suki,” she said, running her fingers along Suki’s hand, “why would you think I wouldn’t like you back?” 

Suki held Yue a little tighter. “I mean, you’re just—really pretty, and really smart, and kind, and compassionate, and just—everything. And I wanted to impress you, and I also wanted you to know me, so that—you know, if—if you wanted to back out—” 

Yue turned up to Suki, narrowing her eyes. “Are you trying to get rid of me?” 

“No!” Suki laughed. “Never.” 

“Good. Because I’m not leaving. And for your information, you’re a badass, and you’re resilient, and you’re brave, and you’re smart, and you’re one of the best people I’ve ever met, and also  _ gorgeous.  _ And I’m here for as long as you want me. Okay? Do you understand?” 

Suki nodded, smiling. “I understand perfectly.” 

“Good.” Yue turned back to the TV. “Now pick the movie.” 

“Okay, but you’re not going to like it.” 

“I am going to love it, because you picked it.” 

“Okay, but—” 

“Suki.” 

Suki giggled. “All right, fine, hand me the remote.” 

Suki, because she was Suki, picked  _ Always Be My Maybe,  _ because even though she spent a third of her time in a dojo, a third decimating white guys in arguments about every topic under the sun, and a third being Kyoshi’s most badass member, she was a sap at heart. It wasn’t often that Yue sat down to watch a movie with zero explosions in it, but she had promised to like whatever Suki picked, and Ali Wong was pretty, so she settled in without complaint. Suki cried at the end, and Yue pulled tissues out of her purse, and they watched the credits just to stay in each other’s arms a little longer. 

And when Yue dragged herself out of Suki’s house, when Suki walked her to her door and kissed her goodnight, when Yue closed the door and immediately got out her phone to text Suki, she reminded herself that there would be other nights like this. This was only the beginning.

**Author's Note:**

> thank you so much for reading! kudos and comments are appreciated, and if you're interested in more content from me you can follow me @harutheestallion on tumblr. 
> 
> if you enjoyed this fic and you have the time and means, please check out [ this donation post ](https://zukosbully.tumblr.com/post/640447865839321088) and [this one ](https://zukosbully.tumblr.com/post/640397109976350720), I'm sure they would greatly appreciate your help!


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